Improvement in breech-loading fire-arms



2 Sheets-Sheet 2. J. D. S. NEWELL.

Breech-Loadng Fire-Am.

No. 88,730. Patentd April 6, 1869.

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Inv@ :ao w- IZ 7245 AQ f N PETERS. PhckI-Lmngipker. Walhlnglnn. D. C.

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J. D. s. NnwnLL, or TIINsAs PARISH, Ass'IeNon rro Hnnsntn N. e. Baron,n. TOMATIS,

AND THoMAs rIoKLn, on NEW onLnANs, LOUISIANA.

Letters Patent No. 88,730, elated April 6, '1869.

INIPROVEMENT IN BREECH-LOADING- FIRE-ARMS.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of thesame.

To all whom it maf/y concern Be it known that I, J. D. S. N nwELL, oftheparish mechanism required in breech-loading arms, by a reduction of thenumber of the parts thereof, and a consequent diminution of the cost ofmanufacturing such arms; but I also secure uniformity of diameter in thebarrel and breech-piece, and therefore a more convenient and symmetricalform of gun.

To attain these desiderata, I provide a breech-piece which moves onslides on each side of it, instead of working through a fixed centre,and is drawn away from the rear end of the barrel, toadmit thecartridge,

by simply cooking the gun, and is then thrown back, through the agencyofthe main-spring, by the pulling of the trigger', and securely lockedin the proper position to close the barrel, and eifectually resist theshock ofthe explosion of the powder on the firing of the gun, an instantbefore the explosion takes place, through theA agency of aneedle-percussion against the fulminate-ring, or hollow anch at the baseof the cartridgecase.

My invention may be said, therefore, to consist of a novel arrangementof simple mechanical parts, which, in their separate form, and combinedrelation and action, will be at once clearly understood by referring tothe drawings.

At Figure l is exhibited an external view of a single-barrel gun, towhich my invention has been aplied. p In this view the gun is cocked,and ready to be iired, so soon as a cartridge has been inserted in thebarrel, which cartridge is designed, in all cases, to be contained in ametallic case, provided with a concentric.

hollow Hauch at the rear end, or base thereof, for the reception of thefulminate, to ignite the powder and discharge the gun. A

It will be observed that there is abundant space between the front endofthe breech-piece A and therear end, B, of the barrel, to allow of theeasy and rapid introduction of a cartridge within the latter.

Two cartridge-withdrawing spring-hooks, a, are secured in longitudinalgrooves, o1' recesses, that are cut or sunk in the breech-piece, inorder to preserve a smooth outside surface on the same, in such mannerthat they project a little beyond the front end of the breech-piece, asshown.

These hooks lenter shallow notches in the rear end of the barrel, andtaking over the ianch of the cartridge-case, whenever the breech-pieceimpinges against the rear end of the barrel, withdraw the said-case,

with or without theball and powder, accordingly as the gun has or hasnot been fired, as the breech-piece is drawn back from the barrel by theop eration of cocking the gun. l l

In order to insure the expulsion of the empty cartridge-case, after itisdrawn out 'of the barrel by the hooks a, from the open space between thebreech-piece and the barrel, a small projecting4 pin, or knob, b, isfixed in the plate H, on which the breech-piece slides,

at a point sufficiently removed from the end ofthe barrel to bring thefront end of the cartridge-.case out of the same, or about at the pointshown on the drawing.

This knob b strikes against the anch of the car I tridge-case, as thelatter is being drawn back bythe hooks @and tilting the same in anupward direction, in a sudden manner, throws it out of connection with'the hooks, and out of the open space, with unvarying certainty. v

The knob b ts in a longitudinal groove, extending from one end to theother, of the breech-piece, and hence affords an additional means to theside-slides, which, I may here remark, may be of any ordinaryconstruction, for keeping the said breech-piece in proper position, inits reciprocating movements to open and i close the rear end of thebarrel.

The breech-piece A is provided with a rear proj ecting part, c, for apurpose hereafterdescribed.

At Figure 2 a longitudinal sectional view is shown, of a gun, to which`my invention has been applied, and it will be seen, from an inspectionof this figure, that the hammer C has a tiiangnlar transverse vcleft, ornotch, (l, across its upper front end, near the bottom thereof, thatexactly corresponds, in size and form, with the back extremity oftheprojecting part c of the breech-piece, and that a peculiarly-termed bar,D, is

pivoted to the same end ofthe hammer, just above the cleft il.

This bar D works in a groove, or narrow recess in the breech-piece A,and its length is just sufcient to insure a slight projection of itssharp-pointed front extremity beyond the front feud of the breech-piece,

whenever force enough is applied to drive it under the spring l1, whichalways happens when the breech-piece' is thrown against the barrel, asin Athe act of firing the gun, by the action or tensile force of themain-spring E of the lock.

The violent projection of the needle-point ofthe bar D against thefulminate-ring, lanch, or other containing-part of the cartridge-case,for the igniting-fulmi- I twice as -deep as it is back of that point,the change of the depth being abrupt, so'as to provide aperpendicularface, f, within4 said recess, for a purpose pres-v entlydisclosed.

The needle-bar 1D, if I may so call. it, is provided with a catch, orhook, g, near its pointed extremity, and on its under side,which, in thebackward moyement of the hammer O, in the operation of cooking the gun,takes against the perpendicular face f, and

thus draws back the breech-piece-A, and opens the bar D, abuttingagainst the rear edge of the spring h,

prevents the protrusion of the pointed extremity vof the said barbeyond' the end of the breech-piece, except when the tensile force ofthespring E, combined with the momentum of the hammer' and breech-piece, isbrought into play in the act of firingthe gun. In this case, the forceis sufficient to drive the bar D un-v derneath the spring h, past thenotch ,the inclination of the same making the operation' certain and'Aeasy, and the spring hold down the bar firmly in its place.

It will thus be seen that the needle-bar D, being pivoted to the hammerC, through the instrumentality of the hook g, on its lower edge, inconnection with the vertical part f of the recess in which it works,constitutes the means of opening the rear end of the barrel, by thesimple operation of drawing back the said hammer in cocking the g'un,and that, hence, the hammer is the on'ly external lever, or part thatneeds to be manipulatedin the actual practice o r use of my invention. v

The hammer C is actuated by a main-spring, E, which is connected to itby means of the'v link F.' l3nt there being no novelty in this spring,nor in its mode of operation, no particular description of it isnecessary.

Nor is-there anything about the trigger that is new.

It may be adjusted to its place, and'with relation to notches in thetumbler-foot oi' the hammer,A to maintain the latter at cock andhalf-cock, in any usual manner that is applicable to similar gun andpistol-locks.

The hammer O articulates, in itsl vibration',on a pin, G, which,insomuch as it sustains, or must withstand the force oi' the shock thatis incident to the discharge of the gun, vshould be made of steel finelytempered, in order to possess the requisite strength.

The pin G has its bearings in-aremovable plate, H, which may be attachedeither to a wooden or metallic stock, at the pleasure of vtheconstructor.

The triangular rear extension, c, of the breechepiece, fits into thecorresplondingly-formed notch d of the hammer, whenever the breech-pieceoccupies the position shown at iig. 2, which it must flo whenever thegun is tired, and thus effectnally prevents the recoil of thebreech-piece, and the opening of the rear end of the barrel by thefiring of the arm, for it will be seen that from the formation of thatpart of the rearward extension c, on which falls all therecoil-pressure, the whole force of such pressure is directed in adownward direction, and that consequently the hammer cannot vibratebackward, nor the breech-piece yield, unless the pin G be broken by the'shock. In fact 'the breechpiece is locked, or held up against the rearend ofthe barrel by this arrangement, by the very force 'of therecoil-tendency, and hence `the singular, if not anomalous fact follows,that precisely in proportion to the force exerted to produce .a recoil,or back movement of the breech-piece, is the tenacity of its hold uponits position against the rear end of the barrel. Noris this the onlyfunction that is fulfilled by the rear extension c of thebree Jh-piece,for, by bringing the ham; mer down upon it, as shown at Figure 3, plate2, the breech-piece is locked between the position of halfcock and thatof absolute contact with the rear end of the barrel, so securely andfirmly, that no blowV nor concussion on the hammer or gun, in thedirection of the muzzle of the g'nn, can unlock it, no matter how severethe same may be, whilst at the same time the gun may be cocked and firedwith the same ease as when at lhalf-cock, or the breech is in directcontact with the rear end oi' the barrel.

This is an exceedingly meritorious characteristic of my invention, forit secures absolute safety against an accidental discharge of the gun towhich it is attached, from any canse whatsoever.

My invention may be used in connection with double, as well assingle-.barrel guns and pistols, and with shot equally as withb'allcartridges, but in all and everyease, metallic cartridges must beused.

Its 'points of merit are,.simplicity, cheapness of construction, andeiiectivene'ss in practice. It can be fired with nearly the samerapidity as the cumbrous maga,- zine-guns of Henry, Spencer, 'Winchestenand others, n hilst it is far lighter, and more symmetricallyproportioned in all its parts. The mode of itsoperation has been mademanifest in describing it.

,Vihat I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, ise l. Thebreech-piece A, in combination with the needle-bar D, when these partsare constructed as herein described, andare united and operateconjointly.,

by means of the vertical face, orA section f, iu the longitudinal recessin the former, and the spring 71, secured over the front end of saidrecess, substantially as herein specified.

2. The above combination, in combination with the projecting knob, orpin b, for throwing out the car tridge-case, substantially as herein setforth.

3. The breech-piece Aeand bar D, in combination'- with the hammer C,when these several parts are constructed, joinedtogether, and conjointly operate, substantially as set forth.

' J. D. S. NEWELL. Witnesses:

H. N. JENKINS, WILL. Roenes.

